The present disclosure relates to an IC chip, an information processing apparatus, a software module control method, an information processing system, an information processing method, and a program. More particularly, the invention relates to an IC chip, an information processing apparatus, a software module control method, an information processing system, an information processing method, and a program for ensuring security before booting a software module reliably.
This applicant proposed previously a communication method for handling noncontact IC cards which have different specifications in terms of command systems and security algorithms and which operate on a plurality of principles (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-264921).
The above proposal involves encompassing the commands sent to and received from IC cards and the resulting responses coming therefrom, by commands called through commands independent of the types of IC cards. The processing involved is performed not by a reader/writer but by a controller module disposed downstream of the reader/writer. The controller module has software modules for dealing with IC cards operating on the diverse principles.
Although a communication system presented by the above proposal can process noncontact IC cards that operate on multiple different principles using a single reader/writer, the proposed system cannot address a single noncontact IC card operating on the multiple different principles.